Moonset
by Cubaser
Summary: Seasons after the victorious battle against BloodClan and the Dark Forest, LightClan prospers. But will the loss of the forest along with the descendant of a legend wreak havoc among the Clan?
1. Chapter 1

**Haw, haw! Told you LightClan wouldn't be gone for long! Heeheehee... -cough- Anyway, this takes place a long time after the BloodClan/Dark Forest fight. All the original characters are dead except for Robinpaw - now Robinsong - and she's an extremely old elder. Now for the allegiances!**

**LightClan**

**Leader**  
Fallenstar - Creamy white tom with deep brown paw tips and no tail.

**Deputy**  
Galeflight - Long-furred gray tom with extremely bushy tail and tufts of black fur on his ears.

**Medicine Cat**  
Hazelpelt - She-cat with a rich brown pelt and white tail tip.

**Medicine Cat Apprentice**  
Dewpaw - All black she-cat with piercing, ice blue eyes.

**Elders  
**Robinsong - Old she-cat. Daughter of Nightstar and Flower, sister of the deceased Stripedfoot.  
Lichentail - White tom with a spiky and quite unorganized tail.  
Crowtalon - A sleek black she-cat with unusually long, black claws.

**Queens  
**Silverflower - Light gray she-cat with white paw-tips, tail-tip and ear-tips. She has unusual marks on the bridge of her nose.  
Mosspelt - Dark gray, almost black she-cat with one orange and one blue eye.**  
**

**Kits  
**Sunnykit - Bright yellow she-kit with faintly darker stripes. Daughter of Silverflower and Sunstripe.  
Sandkit - Pale ginger tom with black tail-tip and paw-tips. Son of Silverflower and Sunstripe.  
Smokekit - Solid dark gray tom with light green eyes and black ear-tips. Son of Mosspelt and ?**  
**

**Warriors  
**Maplefur - Dark reddish brown she-cat with light brown paw-tips and tail-tip. Mentor to Thrushpaw.  
Sunstripe - Bright yellow tabby tom with a scar on his nose. Mentor to Frozenpaw.  
Harestep - Grayish tan tom with white hind paws. Mentor to Grasspaw.  
Jadefoot - Dark gray she-cat with black paw tips and ear tips.  
Hazelfrost - Beige tabby she-cat with sharp blue eyes and white paw-tips and tail-tip.**  
**Embercloud - Long furred red tom with a white tail and muzzle.  
Gorseclaw - Orange tom with yellow stripes on his tail and legs.

**Apprentices  
**Thrushpaw - Light brown tom with a white chest flecked with darker brown spots. Apprentice to Maplefur.  
Frozenpaw - Pure white she-cat with hazel eyes. Apprentice to Sunstripe.  
Grasspaw - Yellow-brown tom with dark brown patches on his back. Apprentice to Harestep.**  
**


	2. The Gollysnatcher

**Don't worry! He'll come in. :3 This takes place after the Clans found their home in the Great Lake.  


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"Hey!"

Smokekit battered at the belly of Sunnykit, who was giggling as she pinned him down. "Bow down to your leader, Smokebrain!"

"_Smokebrain!?" _At this, Smokekit bunched up his haunches and tossed Sunnykit off of him with a flick of his back paws. "You can't call me _Smokebrain_!" he shrieked.

"And why not?" Sunnykit asked, getting to her paws.

"Because..." Smokekit looked around at the moss on the floor, thinking of a reason. "Because..."

Sunnykit waited expectantly.

"Because...Because I'm Smoke_storm_, the deputy! Hah!" Smokekit sat up high and proud, puffing out his chest and looking superior.

"Oh, yeah?" Sunnykit sneered. "Well, watch out, Smoke_storm,_" she said, "Because I'm Sunnystar! And I take away your deputyship and your warriorship! Now you're Smokepaw!"

"No fair!" Smokekit yelped, and bowled Sunnykit over. Sunnykit was taken by surprise, to Smokekit's delight, and fell onto the floor. She growled and wriggled out of Smokekit's grip, tackling him, and in doing so, they tumbled out of the nursery.

"Kits!"

Smokekit and Sunnykit stopped abruptly and sat up straight, searching for who had called them.

There! Outside of the elders' den, basking himself in the sun, was Lichentail. His white, spiky tail was waiving in the air, and Smokekit noticed he didn't like being interrupted very much.

"Kits should stay in the nursery!" the cranky elder remarked. Smokekit cocked his head.

"Why?"

Lichentail hissed and rolled his eyes. "Because! There's danger everywhere if you come out too early!"

Sunnykit got to her feet and looked around. "I don't see any danger!" She looked to Lichentail. "You're making that up to scare us!"

"I am not!" Lichentail said. "Look here." He nodded to a small hole in the ground. Smokekit and Sunnykit crowded around it, pressing their noses to the entrance. Smokekit noted that it smelled faintly of freshkill.

"That's the...the...the Gollysnatcher's hole."

Smokekit scrunched up his face and turned to Lichentail. "What's a _Gollysnatcher_?!"

"It's a big, mean monster," Lichentail said, his eyes narrowed and his lips pulling at a sneer. "That eats kits!"

Sunnykit drew her head out of the hole and fluffed up her fur. "I don't believe you! I'm asking Robinsong!" Smoketail withdrew his head as well and nodded. Before Lichentail could stop them, they were charging towards the elder's den.

"Robinsong!"

They saw the old elder's graying muzzle rise up from her nest. "Yes, young ones?"

Smokekit skidded to a halt by Robinsong's nest. Sunnykit ambled up to her and narrowed her eyes.

"What's a Gollysnatcher?"

Robinsong looked confused. "A...Gollysnatcher?"

"Yeah!" Smokekit piped up. "Lichentail says that it lives in a hole and eats kits!"

Robinsong rolled her eyes. "Lichentail has bees in his brain," she whispered, and the kits giggled. "Let me tell you a _real _story."

Sunnykit plopped herself right beside Robinsong. Smokekit curled himself up, ears forward. He was eager to hear a story - and not one about Gollysnatchers!

"I remember this one well," Robinsong began. "Because I was there."

"Is this the one about Nightstar?" Sunnykit asked excitedly.

"Yes," Robinsong said. "Nightstar wasn't always Nightstar. He was, at first, Night. He was in the horrible BloodClan."

The kits were silent now, watching to see what happened to Nightstar next.

"BloodClan was evil - they tried to invade the forest cat's home. Now, the forest cats are long gone - but then, there were four Clans. The leader of one Clan, ThunderClan, killed Scourge. After that, the BloodClan cats retreated and went back to their camp. They got a new leader - Fang.

Fang was perhaps even more evil than Scourge. He ordered BloodClan to kill any cats that weren't loyal to BloodClan. That pointed to two cats - Patch and Whiskers.

Night tried to stop them, but they killed Patch. Whiskers took him then to this camp. Here, there were other cats that didn't like BloodClan hiding out. An old, brave cat named Merlin was leader then.

Then Night had a dream about his mother. She told him all about StarClan, and he told the rest of the cats. Then, Patch came back and told them it was true. He gave each cat a new name. I was Robinpaw. My brother was Stripedpaw. Whiskers was Dovewing. Merlin was Silverfrost. We had a medicine cat - Duskwind - and several more warriors - Ivytail and Cloverpad.

Night went to the Moonstone and got his leader name, Nightstar. Then he came back. BloodClan had a new ally - the cats of the Dark Forest."

Smokekit's eyes widened. Now this was a real enemy - he heard that the Dark Forest cats could tear you to shreds _in your dreams_!

Robinsong continued. "But we had a better ally - StarClan. LightClan and StarClan defeated the Dark Forest and BloodClan, once and for all. The cats of the Dark Forest disappeared, and the cats from BloodClan scattered. Some, like Crowtalon and Hazelfrost, joined LightClan for a new beginning."

Robinsong licked Sunnykit's head. "Some, like you, are the descendants of Dovewing and Nightstar themselves. Be proud that you have such a heritage." She turned to Smokekit. "Don't think I forgot you," she said. "Silverflower is very proud of you." Robinsong purred. "I'm sure you both will be wonderful warriors."

"Yeah, Smokestorm," Sunnykit whispered. "The best warriors ever!"

"That's right, Sunnystar," Smokekit whispered, and then he promptly fell back asleep.

* * *

**Heh, sort of "In the Nursery" moment there, but that's just the beginning. Muahaha!**


	3. Apprentices At Last!

**Dundundun...Don't worry, the Gollysnatcher isn't real. XD  


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**

Smokekit woke up next to Sunnykit, who was still asleep. Robinsong was snoring loudly, so he nudged Sunnykit. "Wake up, you lazy lump!" he whispered. "Come on!"

Sunnykit snored, and Smokekit stood. "Okay, fine, Sunny_paw! _That means you lost all your lives as leader! Now I'm Smokestar!"

At this, Sunnykit rolled over and opened her mouth, still snoring. Smokekit rolled his eyes and stomped out of the elder's den. He saw that most of the Clan was awake by now, busily walking around and talking. The freshkill pile was empty.

Suddenly, he felt something crash into his side and pinned him down. He felt hot breath on his neck. Without thinking, he panicked.

"Help! _ Help!_ The Gollysnatcher has me!"

Then, a voice whispered in his ear. "That's right," it hissed, "the Gollysnatcher has you!" The voice snickered. "And her name is Sunny_star!_"

Furious, Smokekit pushed Sunnykit off of him and growled. Several warriors were staring at them, and he noticed Frozenpaw giggling nearby. Embarrassed, the skin under his fur grew hot.

"Great!" he hissed. "You embarrassed me in front of the whole Clan!"

Someone nearby laughed, and Sandkit came out of the nursery. "Hi, Sunnykit," he said. Then he turned to Smokekit, sneering. "What's a Gollysnatcher?"

Smokekit looked to his paws. "Nothing," he began, but Sunnykit cut him off. "It's a mean monster that eats kits," she said. "Lichentail told us. And guess what, Sandkit?"

"What?" he asked.

"It's...gonna...get...you!" She pounced on top of the ginger tom and they wriggled around, Smokekit forgotten.

"What's all that racket?" came a voice, and Smokekit turned around to find the white she-cat, Frozenpaw, looking at him. Smokepaw shuffled his paws and didn't say anything. He didn't want Frozenpaw to think he was stupid, after all, but what could he say? That a Gollysnatcher got him?

Smokekit shrugged. "Uh, just...playing."

Suddenly, a bright yellow tom with stripes came forward. "Frozenpaw!" he called. "Come on. We're going to go hunting."

Frozenpaw's eyes glowed, and she ran after Sunstripe without a second glance at Smokekit. Sunstripe looked at Smokekit. "You're going to be an apprentice, soon," he said, and disappeared through the crack in the fence, going to teach Frozenpaw hunting.

Smokekit turned and looked at Sunnykit and Sandkit, still tumbling around in the dirt. Sunstripe was right; he would be an apprentice soon. And that meant that he'd be a warrior, too! He wondered what Sunnykit's warrior name would be. Maybe Sunnywhisker?

"Oh, Smokekit!" Mosspelt, his mother, called. Smokekit ran up to her, twigs crackling underneath his paws.

"Smokekit," she sighed, and licked his head. Smokekit wriggled out from under her grip. "Mom!"

Mosspelt held a paw on her son's back and began licking her again. "Oh, did Sunstripe tell you?" Tell me what? Smokekit wondered. "I can't believe you're growing to be an apprentice so soon," she whispered. "I'm so proud."

"Is Galeflight proud, too?" Smokekit asked.

"Galeflight?" Mosspelt asked, a blank expression growing on her face.

"My...father?"

"Oh," Mosspelt said, light of recognition shining on her face. "Right. Yes, of course he's proud. Very. Now..."

"Let the Clan gather!" the familiar yowl of Fallenstar came. Smokekit leapt up. "You mean that I'm being an apprentice right _now_?!" he exclaimed. Without waiting for an answer, he sped out the door, into the crowd of the Clan.

"Sandkit, please step forward," Fallenstar said. The ginger tom padded forward into the middle of the clearing. Fallenstar dipped his head. "Do you accept the responsibilities and the loyalty to your Clan that comes with being an apprentice?"

"Yes."

"Then, in full view of LightClan, I name you Sandpaw. Your mentor shall be Gorseclaw."

Gorseclaw, a bright orange tom with yellow stripes on his tail and forelegs walked forward and touched noses with Sandpaw. He looked very stern and serious, and Sandpaw didn't look very comfortable around him. Hah! thought Smokekit.

"Sunnykit, step forward," Fallenstar said. Sunnykit walked forward, a bit clumsy, but a bright spark in her eyes. "Do you accept the responsibilities and the loyalty to your Clan that comes with being an apprentice?"

"I do!" she exclaimed.

"Then, in full view of LightClan, I name you Sunnypaw. Your mentor shall be Jadefoot."

Jadefoot, the dark gray she-cat, walked forward and touched noses with Sunnypaw. Sunnypaw looked excited, but Smokekit didn't get to see for long.

"Smokekit," Fallenstar said. Smokekit walked forward, his legs shaking slightly. He thought he saw Sandpaw sneering at him, and he straightened up considerably. There was no way he was going to look weak in front of stinking Sandpaw and Gorseclaw!

"Smokekit, do you accept the responsibilities and the loyalty to your Clan that comes with being an apprentice?"

"Yes!" Smokekit exclaimed, a bit too fast. He heard a murmur of laughter in the crowd, and he felt hot under his fur.

"Then, in full view of LightClan, I name you Smokepaw. Your mentor shall be Embercloud."

Smokepaw looked around for the tom whose name was Embercloud. Then, he saw a magnificent long-haired red tom appear out of the crowd, his long white plume of a tail swishing. He touched noses to Smokepaw, and Smokepaw could barely contain his excitement.

His training for a warrior would begin!


	4. Around Town

**Rose: Yup, the main character's Smokepaw. :3  
Everyone else: Grawr, review! -stomps around- xD  


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Embercloud seemed to read Smokepaw's mind. As the Clan dispersed, he looked to Gorseclaw and Jadefoot. "Shall we show these new apprentices their territory?" he asked, and his tone seemed to be teasing the apprentices. Sunnypaw looked up at Jadefoot, her tail lashing in excitement. Sandpaw looked at Gorseclaw timidly, but the warrior just nodded and slipped silently through the fence.

Jadefoot exchanged a look with Embercloud and they followed. Jadefoot looked back through the crack in the fence. "Coming, you three?"

Sunnypaw looked at Smokepaw, excitement showing in her eyes, and quickly ran through the crack. Sandpaw followed, and Smokepaw was quickly behind, not wanting to be outdone by anyone. He was going to be the best apprentice ever!

Smokepaw looked at the hard, stone road that stretched out in front of them. There were twoleg nests on either side, making any place other than forward impossible. Embercloud nodded to the path.

"That's a Twolegpath," he said. "They're much smaller than Thunderpaths and only twolegs and cats walk on them. Before we go ahead, I want to show you something." He looked to the side, where a small section of white twoleg fence was sectioned between solid walls.

Gorseclaw walked ahead this time. "This wood is soft and old, so you can climb up. Watch me," he said to Sandpaw, and leapt up. Smokepaw thought he would jump cleanly over the fence, but Gorseclaw's paws shot out and he clung to the side of the fence. He clawed his way up using his claws and disappeared through the other side.

Smokepaw heard his voice call out - "Now you try, Sandpaw."

Sandpaw looked uncertain, but he scrambled up the fence. "This is easy!" he exclaimed before falling off the other side. Smokepaw stifled a snort as he heard Gorseclaw yelp in surprise as Sandpaw presumably fell on him.

Sunnypaw laughed and climbed the fence before pausing at the top and leaping down. Jadefoot followed, and Embercloud paused at the top of the fence before turning and saying, "Dig in with your claws, and use your legs," before disappearing.

Smokepaw leapt up and dug his claws into the soft wood. He then pulled himself up with his legs before he leapt down once more. Inside the fence was a small garden. Bushes flecked with berries of blues, reds and oranges scattered the garden, and Smokepaw noticed a baby tree in the corner. It wasn't much, and he wondered why the mentors had brought them here.

"This is where Hazelpelt gets her medicinecat supplies. All of these are berries and herbs that help cats. We're lucky that the twolegs here grow them in such an easy place to access," Embercloud said.

Jadefoot nodded. "Now," she said, "that we're in, there's an easy way out." With a teasing light in her eyes, she flicked her tail towards a hole near the ground, right where the fence was. It was wide enough for a cat to slip through, and Jadefoot did just that.

"Hey!" Sandpaw exclaimed. "If there was a hole, why did we have to climb the fence?"

"To get your claws and legs in shape," growled Gorseclaw. "Do you want to be fat and lazy like the kittypets that live around here?"

"No!" Sandpaw said, and quickly scurried down the hole. Not wanting to be last again, Smokepaw rushed forward and into the hole, quickly finding himself on the other side of the fence again. He glanced at the claw marks he made by climbing up, and noticed that it was accompanied by many others.

"Now that we explored that part of our territory," Embercloud started, "let's go down the path."

The apprentices and mentors travelled down the stone path until it came to an end. Here, there was a small strip of black stone and grass - beyond that, Thunderpaths. They twisted around, the monsters zooming past too fast for any cat's paws.

"That used to be the forest that the forest cats lived in," Embercloud said. "Do you see those mountains, way past there?"

Smokepaw squinted into the distance and saw a rocky slope with a small cavern. "Yes."

"Those are Highstones. In it, there is..." Embercloud trailed off, flicking his tail. Gorseclaw stepped up beside him. "In it is a lot of darkness," the prickly warrior said, "and we don't need any of that. Let's go show them where the prey is. Or, should I say, _should _be."

Gorseclaw tapped Sandpaw on the shoulder and went left, walking in front of a row of twoleg nests, or houses. Jadefoot glanced at Embercloud, shrugged, and walked ahead with Sunnypaw. Smokepaw followed after them, and Embercloud kept up with a steady gait.

"What Gorseclaw means," he said, "is that we're very low on prey now that the forest is gone. There used to be an abundance where we're going, but there's not much left but a few starving mice. Sometimes we get food from the twolegs."

Smokepaw was wondering at the thought of getting food from twolegs when the line of houses stopped and another white fence began. Gorseclaw, seeming to still be in a bad mood, slipped in yet another hole in the fence. As Smokepaw followed, he wondered if those holes were made from the cats of long ago, from the beginnings of LightClan. Maybe they were.

Smokepaw found himself and the others staring at piles and piles of dead trees. There was an enormous monster in the corner, although it had sat there so long that there were small green plants growing on it. The grass here was long and crunchy. Smokepaw wandered up to the monster; it didn't seem to notice him. He felt Sunnypaw walk up beside him and stare at it with interest.

"Is it dead?" she asked.

"No!" the voice of Sandpaw came. "I bet it's going to ambush you!"

Jadefoot walked over and gently eased the apprentices away from the monster. "It's been here since the time of Nightstar," she said. "I don't think it's going to leap on you now."

Gorseclaw snorted. "Now, thanks to all your racket, the prey is gone." He nodded to the pile of dead trees. "They hide in there when there's cats around."

Sandpaw looked crestfallen. Sunnypaw laid a tail tip on his shoulder, and Smokepaw heard her murmur something comforting in his ear.

Suddenly, Smokepaw saw something tremble. It was...a tail? A fat, bushy tail was protruding out from under the rubble, and it was swishing.

Immediately, Smokepaw got low to the ground and padded forward - he could hear the leaves crunching underneath his paws, however, and the tail vanished. With a yowl of impatience, he shot out into the rubble.

He heard Embercloud call his name, but he was too far in - all he could see was darkness, and all he could feel was wood. He thought he saw the tail, however, and tried to climb through to the end of the maze.

Suddenly, however, he heard a rumbling sound and felt the weight of enormous tree trunks shift from their position down to him. Crying out, he tried to get free, but he was stuck fast. He felt the prickly sensation of heavy branches resting on his back, and he heard something snap before everything went black.


	5. Dewpaw

**:3 Thanks!

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_"He is not ready!" a hissing voice came, dripping with malice._

_"I know that," a much calmer, smoother voice said. "That is why I am doing my best to save him."_

_"If he goes to StarClan..." the first voice spoke, this time sounding anxious._

_"If he goes to StarClan, then all is lost. The procedure cannot be done twice, and there is no other cat that is able to achieve this. He is the one, and if he goes to StarClan...all is lost."_

_Smokepaw was lost, floating, in the darkness. He couldn't see anything, and he didn't seem to feel the need to breathe. All he was was floating, barely conscious except for the voices that slowly drifted their way into his mind._

_"You will _live_."_

_

* * *

_

Smokepaw was vaguely aware of someone speaking nearby. He slowly drifted back into awareness, the voices becoming clear - they were Mosspelt's and Hazelpelt's.

Mosspelt's voice was distressed. "Are you sure he'll recover? All those logs..."

"Yes," came the steady and patient voice of Hazelpelt. "He was doing badly before, but suddenly...he recovered. He may even be able to go back to training in a few days."

"Do you think..." Mosspelt's voice dropped to a whisper, "Do you think that maybe..."

"No," came the interruption by Hazelpelt. "StarClan hasn't sent me any signs. I'm positive that it isn't that."

"Alright..."

* * *

The second time Smokepaw woke up, it was real. He slowly opened his eyes and found himself in the medicine cat den, on a nest lined with soft moss and feathers. A second after this registered, so did the pain.

His hind leg shrieked in protest as Smokepaw tried to get up, and in doing so, he collapsed. Pain shot up and down his spine and through to his leg, and he winced and curled up.

"Don't struggle," came a voice that he's never heard before. Turning to the sound, he found a black she-cat with ice blue eyes staring at him. She walked towards him and glanced at his leg. "It's not fully healed yet."

Smokepaw cocked his head. "Who are you?"

"Dewpaw. The medicine cat apprentice. You took your time," she said almost off-handedly. "We almost thought you'd died at one point."

At this, all the memories came rushing back - the squirrel tail, the logs, the crushing darkness..."How long have I been...asleep?"

"Three days."

Smokepaw sat up suddenly, his leg screaming in protest. "Three days?! I'm going to miss my training!"

"Sit down!" Dewpaw snapped, and Smokepaw cringed at the ice in her voice and relented. Her voice grew softer. "I know you're eager to train again, but you can't if your leg is broken. Just be glad you will be able to train - we thought that your back broke, and then you'd have been stuck here forever."

Smokepaw shivered at that prospect - the den was small and dim, the only light shining through some cracks in the bracken. He thought back to the crushing blackness - from between here and then, there was a gap in his memory. Only a fleeting glimpse of what he assumed had been a dream - and then, he couldn't even remember that. Miserably, he sunk into his makeshift nest.

"Don't be so down," Dewpaw said. "You'll be able to train again as soon as that leg heals up. Maybe...in a few days."

"How do you know that?" Smokepaw asked, awed.

"Medicine cats know everything," Dewpaw said nonchalantly.

"How?" Smokepaw's curiosity only grew as the ebony cat told him more.

"StarClan tells us," she said. "And StarClan know everything, too. Of course..."

"What?" Smokepaw breathed, completely into Dewpaw's tale now.

"Warriors get to know everything, too, when they go to StarClan." Dewpaw sat down and licked a paw, slowly drawing it over her ear. "It's just that us medicine cats get to know first."

Smokepaw slumped down in the nest, looking at the ground. "Well," he said after a while, "I like being a warrior better. There's lots of exciting things to do, like hunt, and fight, and -"

"And get crushed by logs?" Dewpaw cut in drily. "I like the life of a medicine cat, thank you very much. I don't think you'd make a good one at all, though. No, too impatient."

"Who's impatient?" cut in a voice - Hazelpelt. The she-cat walked in, eyeing Dewpaw and Smokepaw suspiciously. "I hope you haven't been upsetting him? That leg needs time to heal."

"Nope," Dewpaw said. "We were just talking."

"Yeah," Smokepaw said, not wanting to be a tattle-tail.

"Well, Dewpaw, I want you to come collect burdock root with me," she said. "We're running low, and StarClan knows how many rats we have here. Come on," she said, and with a flick of her tail, she and Dewpaw disappeared out the medicine cat den entrance.

Smokepaw sighed and rest his head on his front paws. And, before he knew it, he drifted into a deep, long sleep.


	6. Just Visiting

**Whee! This is fun. I'll get to Rising Sun, don't worry.

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**

Smokepaw awoke once more to the sound of voices.

"Please, can I see him?"

For a wild moment, Smokepaw thought the voice was Frozenpaw's and felt a strange happy sensation before realizing that it was really his mother's voice, Mosspelt. Hazelpelt's voice cut in.

"He's resting."

Smokepaw opened his eyes and glanced to the entrance, into which his mother was peering. When she caught sight of his face, she was instantly by his side, licking his face.

"Mom!" Smokepaw complained, recoiling from his mother's tongue. "Stop it, that tickles!"

"Oh, my Smokepaw!" Mosspelt said, holding him still with one paw and swiping her tongue over his ears. "I thought you'd be gone! I'm so glad you're alright...And you'll be training again soon, did you hear? I'm so proud!"

For a second, Smokepaw thought of asking if Galeflight was proud too, but decided against it in fear that his mother would give him the same blank stare she had the night of his apprenticement. Instead, Hazelpelt thrust her muzzle into the den.

"You're awake," she said dryly. Suddenly, Smokepaw saw where Dewpaw gother personality. "Yup!" he replied happily. He attempted to stretch only to coil back into a ball when his leg responded painfully.

"I wouldn't try that too soon," Hazelpelt said. Mosspelt drew a final lick across her son's forehead and leaned back, eyes shining. Hazelpelt coughed once, and Mosspelt retreated her head, embarrassed. Hazelpelt bid her goodbye and looked at Smokepaw.

"What am I going to do with -"

"Hazelpelt!"

The beige she-cat turned her head around angrily. "What is it?" she snapped.

An unabashed Sunnypaw popped her head into the den. "Just want to see Smokepaw!" she said happily. Smokepaw heard Hazelpelt sigh and walk out of the den, but he didn't care. Sunnypaw was visiting!

"How's your leg?" she asked.

"Hurts," Smokepaw said, wincing for emphasis. "How's training? Is Gorseclaw still prickly?"

"As prickly as ever! His name should have been Pricklepelt," she joked. "Jadefoot is really funny; I'm glad I have her as my mentor! Embercloud blamed himself for you going into the wood pile, but he's looking forward to training with you again." She peered at him. "You _are _training again, aren't you?"

"Of course!" Smokepaw said. He couldn't imagine what it'd be like if he couldn't be a warrior! "I have to let my leg heal for a while, though."

"Who's that black she-cat that comes in here sometimes? Is she the medicine cat apprentice?"

"Yes, she is," Dewpaw's voice came. The dark cat slipped into the den. "And her name's Dewpaw. Nice to meet you..."

"Sunnypaw," Sunnypaw said. Dewpaw nodded in acknowledgement and looked at Smokepaw. Smokepaw thought he saw Sunnypaw flash an irritated glance at Dewpaw, but he couldn't have been sure.

Dewpaw poked around the back of the den, finally withdrawing her head with her jaws stuffed with bright green leaves. "Medicine cat stuff," she said, and slunk out the den once more.

"She's sort of...weird," Sunnypaw whispered.

"Is she?" Smokepaw asked, looking out the den entrance where Dewpaw went. "I don't think so. She's pretty funny, actually. She says that medicine cats know everything."

Sunnypaw sniffed disdainfully and cast another glance out the den before looking to Smokepaw. "Well," she said, "hope you get to come and get out of this stuff place soon! Smells like mouse bile." Without another word, she disappeared out the den entrance, leaving a faint trace of something Smokepaw couldn't really identify behind.

"Weird she-cats," he muttered, and lay down in his nest once more.


End file.
